What We DO

Whether it’s the roads you travel on, the bridges you cross, the tunnels you whisk through, the subway systems you ride...or the buildings and complexes where you work, receive medical care, view sporting events...or the dams, pipelines, oil refineries and rigs, and petro-chemical plants you rely on for water and energy needs...or programs to rid your schools and communities of asbestos and hazardous materials and waste... It’s a good bet they were built and are operated and serviced by members of the International Union of Operating Engineers (IUOE).

Because it is Operating Engineers who survey the sites, make the cuts, hoist the steel and slabs...do the final grading… operate and maintain the finished product.

We operate the bulldozers, the motor graders, the backhoes, the cranes helping to form and shape the infrastructure and skylines. We work the mines, we dig the wells. We operate the boilers, the generators and the heating and cooling systems, as well as maintain the buildings and grounds, that help make you comfortable at work and play.

We work in private industry and in various areas of public employment such as hospitals, nursing homes, schools and government complexes.

Operating Engineers are the first on a construction job and the last off. When it involves a commercial or industrial complex, stationary engineers are there long after the construction is finished, operating and maintaining the completed facility.

IUOE is a trade union representing all of these workers: from the heavy equipment operators and mechanics in the construction industry, to the stationary engineers—those who maintain and operate building and industrial complexes and service industries throughout the United States and Canada.

IUOE is dedicated to serving and protecting the needs and interests of its members and their families through the collective bargaining process, legislative action and extensive training and skills improvement programs.

As the 12th largest union in the AFL-CIO and the third largest in the Canadian Labour Congress, IUOE is a recognized leader in organized labor’s efforts to improve the standards of living of workers and their families in both countries.